Russian military plane with more than 90 people took off from Sochi and disappeared from radars

As reported by Interfax referring to a source, a Tu-154 airplane that took off from Sochi disappeared from radars. According to TASS, the plane belongs to the Defense Ministry.

Defense Ministry has confirmed the disappearance of the aircraft. There were 91 people on board: 83 passengers and 8 crew.

According to TASS, passengers are musicians of the Aleksandrov’s ensemble, and journalists.

Interfax reports that the board disappeared from radars while flying over the Black Sea. It also reported that the plane was heading to Syria. The plane took off at 5:20 Moscow time, and air traffic controllers lost it after 20 minutes.

The Tu-154 flew to Sochi from the town of Chkalovsk near Moscow. In Sochi it was refuelled.